1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an electrical processing apparatus and method for electrically processing a display panel having an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) in which an abrupt reduction of initial luminance may be prevented.
2. Description of the Background
With the development of telecommunication technology, the demand for electronic display devices has increased, resulting in the introduction of various display devices. In order to satisfy the various demands of the information age, electronic display devices are being introduced which provide a large viewing area and high performance, while maintaining a low-cost, thin compact design.
Flat panel display devices, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) and a plasma display panel (PDP) possessing these characteristics, are becoming more prevalent in the electronic display market. Recently, the OLED has attracted public attention because of its self-emitting characteristic. In particular, research and development has focused on mass-production and scale-up techniques for an active matrix OLED in which pixels arranged on an OLED panel are individually driven to obtain high-quality images.
A display device having an organic light-emitting layer uses an organic material element. As shown in FIG. 1, the initial luminance of the organic material element is abruptly reduced over time. Generally, the lifespan (tL) of the organic material element ends when the luminance is less than a half luminance (L1/2) of the initial luminance (L0) of the organic material element. Hence, the lifespan of the organic material element shortens if the luminance of the organic material element is abruptly reduced at the initial stage of luminance.
In order to prevent shortening the organic material element's lifespan before a commercialization process, the OLED is subjected to an electrical processing during manufacture to extend the lifespan of the organic material element.
Through the electrical processing process, a current having a voltage greater than a driving voltage, which is applied to drive a display panel having the organic light-emitting layer, is supplied to the organic material element. Because many pixels are arranged on the display panel having the organic light-emitting layer, an excessive current may be supplied for the electrical processing of the OLED. When the excessive current is applied to a particular area of the OLED, the organic material element may overload. As a result, heat is generated in a particular area whose width is relatively narrow because of a resistance when the current flows, thereby causing the organic material element to become non-uniform, burn, or be damaged.